Chana Dal is an easy Indian Lentil recipe prepared with chana dal lentils (also known as split chickpeas or Bengal gram), assorted spices cooked in an Instant pot pressure cooker, or a traditional Indian pressure cooker for under 30 minutes. Vegan, Gluten-free.
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What is Dal?
Dal, also called Daal, Dhal, or Dahl, are basically dried pulses that can be whole or split.
Chana dal (also known as split chickpeas or Bengal gram) is a very popular and healthy legume frequently cooked in almost every Indian household. This is because Chana dal has a great source of plant protein, iron, folate, fiber, gluten-free, and diabetic-friendly since it has a low glycemic index of around 8.
Today, we are making an easy North Indian style Chana Dal with an extra ghee tadka which adds all the magic. It gets ready in under 30 minutes and is perfect for weekday meals.
You can follow the same chana dal fry recipe with Red lentils (also known as Masoor Dal). I have shared both Instant Pot Pressure Cooker and Traditional Stovetop recipe below.
Ingredients for Chana Dal
Here are the main ingredients required to make chana dal recipe at home.
- Chana Dal: Soak chana dal for at least 15-20 minutes to 2 hours to reduce the cooking time.
- Green chilies: I have used two green Thai chilies.
- Ginger: I have used minced ginger and garlic.
- Onion: I have used finely chopped onions. You can prefer to skip it if you are making chana dal recipe without onion and garlic.
- Tomatoes: I have used Roma tomatoes.
- Oil: Use any cooking oil or ghee.
- Dry spices: I have used cumin seeds, turmeric powder, red chili powder, and coriander powder. You can increase or decrease the spices according to your choice.
- Lime Juice: use freshly squeezed lime juice.
- Coriander leaves: I have used coriander leaves for garnish.
How to Make Chana Dal in Instant Pot
Soak the chana dal in hot water for 15-20 minutes.
Press SAUTE on Instant Pot. Add oil, and once it's hot, add cumin seeds. Let them crackle.
Add minced onions, ginger garlic, and green chili. Saute till onions turn light brown.
Next, add tomatoes, dry spices like turmeric powder, red chili powder, coriander powder, garam masala, and salt. Cook till tomatoes turn soft, which takes 2-3 minutes.
Then add soaked lentils, water and give a stir. Adjust spices at this stage. Also, deglaze the pot, i.e., make sure there is no food particle sticking to the pot to avoid burn alerts.
Close the lid securely, and turn the vent to "SEALING". Select the PRESSURE COOK/MANUAL (High Pressure) setting and set the cooking time to 12 minutes.
When the instant pot beeps, allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes, then release any remaining pressure before removing the lid.
Lastly, squeeze some lime juice and garnish with coriander leaves (cilantro). Mix well. Add ½ cup of water to adjust the dal consistency if required.
Optionally, You can also add extra tempering (tadka).
Instant Pot Chana Dal curry, also known as Bengal gram dal or split chickpeas lentils, is ready. Serve hot with steamed rice, quinoa, or roti.
Note on the consistency:
If one wants soft mashed dal, 14-15 minutes manual/pressure cook (High Pressure) is probably the ideal setting in manual mode.
But I like lentils to be a little firm, so I usually cook for 12 minutes Manual/Pressure Cook (High Pressure).
Stovetop Pressure Cooker Method
Follow the same steps from the instant pot instructions. Give 3-4 whistles on medium flame and let the pressure release naturally. All the other steps remain the same.
Stovetop Pot Method
Soak the chana dal for 3-4 hours and then boil it in a large pot for 25-30 minutes or until soft. After the lentils are cooked, prepare the tempering. Then saute onion-tomato-ginger-garlic paste and then assemble the dal.
Serving Suggestions
Serve Chana Dal Fry with roti, chapati, jeera rice, or basmati rice. I like eating it with steamed rice or serving it as a Split Chickpeas Soup.
Tips to make the Best Chana Dal
- Soaking Chana Dal: Don’t skip out on soaking the chana dal for at least 15-20 minutes – Chana dal takes a longer time to cook. Soaking softens the lentils and cooks faster.
- Dal Consistency: If dal has more liquid, then you can boil it for a few minutes and vaporize the water.
- Spices: Increase or decrease the spices according to your preference.
Variations
- Add vegetables: You can also add bottle gourd, zucchini, or pumpkin to this dal.
- No Onion, No Garlic: For a variation, you can also make this dal by skipping onion, and garlic.
- Using Bhuna Masala: You can use ½-¾ cup of Bhuna Masala (Onion Tomato Masala) in place of the onion, tomato, ginger, and garlic, in this recipe. Heat the oil, and add cumin. Let cumin seeds splutter. Then add the Bhuna Masala and saute for about a minute. Then add the ground spices and follow the same recipe.
- Vegan: Skip ghee and use any cooking oil of your choice.
FAQs
Chana dal tadka is excellent for meal planning, can be refrigerated for 3-4 days, and freezes well up to a month when stored in freezer-safe bags.
More Chana Dal Recipes
More Lentils/Bean Recipes
- Dal Tadka - Dal cooked with toor dal (yellow lentils).
- Green Lentil Soup – lentil soup made with green lentils, carrots, celery, red bell pepper, and Indian spices.
- Spinach Dal / Palak Dal – Dhal cooked with spinach leaves.
- Whole green moong dal– Dal cooked with whole mung beans.
- Panchmel dal – dal prepared with five varieties of lentils.
- Spinach Dal / Palak Dal – Dhal cooked with spinach leaves.
- Raw Mango Dal – Dal cooked with Raw Mango.
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Instant Pot Chana dal Recipe (Split Chickpeas Soup)
Ingredients
- 1 cup chana dal (bengal gram) soaked in hot water for 15-20 minutes
- 1 small onion finely chopped
- 1 large tomato finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon ginger garlic minced
- 1 green chili slit lengthwise
- 2 cups water for cooking
- 2 tablespoons oil (or ghee)
- 2 tablespoons coriander leaves
- juice of half lime
- salt to taste
Spices:
- 1 teaspoon cumin (jeera) seeds
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- ½ teaspoon red chilli powder
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- ½ teaspoon garam masala
Extra Tempering (Optional)
- 1 teaspoon ghee
- ½ teaspoon cumin (jeera) seeds
- ¼ teaspoon red chili powder
- a pinch asafetida (hing)
Instructions
Instant Pot Method:
- Soak the chana dal in hot water for 15-20 minutes.
- Press SAUTE on Instant Pot. Add oil, and once it's hot, add cumin seeds. Let them crackle.
- Add minced onions, ginger garlic, and green chili. Saute till onions turn light brown.
- Next, add tomatoes, dry spices like turmeric powder, red chili powder, coriander powder, garam masala, and salt. Cook till tomatoes turn soft, which takes 2-3 minutes.
- Then add soaked lentils, water and give a stir. Adjust spices at this stage. Also, deglaze the pot, i.e., make sure there is no food particle sticking to the pot to avoid burn alerts.
- Close the lid securely, and turn the vent to "SEALING". Select the PRESSURE COOK/MANUAL (High Pressure) setting and set the cooking time to 12 minutes.
- Once the pot beeps, let it release the pressure naturally (NPR) for 10 minutes.
- Lastly, squeeze some lime juice and garnish with coriander leaves (cilantro). Mix well. Add ½ cup of water to adjust the dal consistency if required.Optionally, You can also add extra tempering (tadka).
- Instant Pot Chana Dal curry, also known as Bengal gram dal or split chickpeas lentils, is ready. Serve hot with steamed rice, quinoa, or roti.
Stovetop Pressure Cooker Method:
- Follow the same steps from the instant pot instructions. Give 3-4 whistles on medium flame and let the pressure release naturally. All the other steps remain the same.
Stovetop Pot Method
- Just soak the chana dal for 3-4 hours and then boil it in a large pot for 25-30 minutes or until soft. After the lentils are cooked, prepare the tempering. Then saute onion-tomato-ginger-garlic paste and then assemble the dal.
Notes
Tips to make the Best Chana Dal
- Soaking Chana Dal: Don’t skip out on soaking the chana dal for at least 15-20 minutes – Chana dal takes a longer time to cook. Soaking softens the lentils and cooks faster.
- Dal Consistency: If dal has more liquid, then you can boil it for a few minutes and vaporize the water.
- Spices: Increase or decrease the spices according to your preference.
Variations
- Add vegetables: You can also add bottle gourd, zucchini, or pumpkin to this dal.
- No Onion, No Garlic: For a variation, you can also make this dal by skipping onion, and garlic.
- Using Bhuna Masala: You can use ½-¾ cup of Bhuna Masala (Onion Tomato Masala) in place of the onion, tomato, ginger, and garlic, in this recipe. Heat the oil, and add cumin. Let cumin seeds splutter. Then add the Bhuna Masala and saute for about a minute. Then add the ground spices and follow the same recipe.
- Vegan: Skip ghee and use any cooking oil of your choice.
Nutrition
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